Shay & Amy

Shay and Amy from Birmingham, UK were placed with their son and became a family just last week!

Taking a few moments out of their busy new lives as mums, Shay spoke to us about their experience of adoption and their hopes for the future.

Tell us a little about yourselves

I’m Shay and I’m 38 and my partner Amy is 36. We live near Birmingham and we've been together for five years.
Amy is originally from Cornwall so we tend to go down there quite a lot and just love being out and about, just us or with family and friends. Amy works in care which I also do occasionally and I also have an online small business making handmade keepsakes which I sell worldwide.
Have you always wanted to be mums?
Yes, we both always said we wanted children and being adopted myself I always wanted to adopt my own. I’m lucky that Amy was keen to go on this journey with me (perfect match!).
We have a few friends who have recently adopted so we've been able to talk and ask questions, along with my own parents of course who have always been so supportive and helpful throughout this whole process.
How have you found the adoption process so far?
Well it’s true when they say it’s like a rollercoaster! So many feelings and emotions. It's a long journey and you do have to be prepared for periods when you feel like you're being forgotten as you don’t hear anything, but you aren’t. Then all of a sudden when a match has been made it seems to fly by and is a whirlwind!
We recently had our introduction week with our little boy which went amazingly (credit to the foster carer). Just a week ago, a day we will never forget, we went and picked him up and bought him home. The first week has gone so well, although we are two very tired mummies and mostly in bed by 9pm! Ha ha!

What are you most looking forward to about being mums?
We are looking forward to it all... Making memories and teaching our little boy all we can. We just want him to have an amazing life and help him experience all he wants to and just build a loving and caring family. We hope to extend our family in the future, too.

"We just want him to have an amazing life and help him experience all he wants to..."

What advice would you give to young LGBTQ people who aspire to be parents some day?

I would say if it’s something you have ever thought about doing, just go along to an open day or evening and get some advice. Being a same sex couple has never been any issue; as long as you are a strong couple full of love with support from friends and family, that’s all you need.

The journey can be long and will be testing at times but in the end you will become a chosen family for a child that just needs love and a loving family.
Believe me when I say that from my own personal experience I thank my lucky stars I was chosen by mum and dad, as I would definitely not have had the life I do now.